College Student to Corporate

Graduation season is here. It’s filled with laughter, smiles, tears, and the start of new beginnings. It can be scary to not know what’s going to happen next, but after years of preparing for this moment, the time has come. And that sweet time came for Jules Wonodi when she graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in history and communications. Wonodi said goodbye to the student life and hello to the corporate world as an associate accountant manager for Amazon Ads.

Wonodi has been promoted at Amazon Ads, where she is a current sales account manager. In her role, she supports major clients through campaign strategy, analytics, and performance optimization. At Amazon, Wonodi blends her background in marketing and branding with creative leadership.

Coming from a competitive school like the University of Pennsylvania, Wonodi assumed it would be an easy transition for her. She faced learning curves like speaking confidently about herself and her value, but support from her Amazon team made the transition easier. She said it’s important to find people that you can go to with your questions, especially in your field of interest.

“Amazon already has a culture of being employee first,” said Wonodi.

Wonodi was mentored by an account executive who created a safe space for Wonodi to give feedback and receive advice. Wonodi found herself spending hours rewriting one email at a time trying to get the language perfect. Her mentor told her to stop overthinking and to not spend her nights with such tasks. It is moments like these that have helped Wonodi find her way in the corporate world.

In her latest role, Wonodi is constantly meeting with clients, which involves calling, flying to different cities, and diving deep into the most effective sales and tactic strategies. She splits her day between external and internal tasks.

Wonodi helps bring ads to Amazon’s platforms and believes strong client relationships start with curiosity. It’s about listening to their needs and delivering accordingly.

“You want to show them you have their best interest,” said Wonodi.

Yoga Sessions with Amazon Black Employee Network

Outside of Amazon, Wonodi is a certified yoga instructor. During the pandemic, like many of us, she picked up a hobby. Yoga was a way for her to find peace in a world of chaos and confusion. As a competitive person, she challenged herself to do intense yoga poses like a handstand. She was eventually encouraged to become a certified yoga instructor, which has taken on a life of its own.

She began hosting yoga events and building a wellness community, even promoting it on LinkedIn, despite some family members warning her not to share too much, thinking it wouldn’t be well received at work. Wonodi continued promoting her yoga, which caught the attention of Amazon Black Employee Network (BEN).

Amazon has many employee-led groups, which allow Amazon employees to come together across businesses and locations around the world. BEN is Amazon’s largest employee-led group with thousands of employees around the world. Ben’s mission is to recruit, retain, and empower Black employees. BEN connects members with mentors and provides career and personal development workshops.

Wonodi joined BEN as a committee member in 2024. She now serves as the director of social media for BEN DMV, where she brings wellness and culture together through community programming. Through BEN, Wonodi hosts yoga sessions for Amazon employees to give them a break from office life.

She’s hosted about six BEN yoga events, teaching basic moves to help desk-bound employees feel better physically and mentally. She said small things like eating your lunch outside in the sun or going on a five-minute walk can make a world of difference.

“It’s one of those daily luxuries that doesn’t cost anything,” she said.

Wonodi’s yoga sessions with BEN are hosted every few months.

“[BEN] has been a huge reason I love working at Amazon and why I stay at Amazon,” Wonodi said. “…big ups to BEN. It really gave me the space to showcase my yoga.”

Yoga is one of the many employee perks at Amazon. The Virginia headquarters hosts Tuesday farmer markets and has quiet rooms for breaks. Wonodi believes all workplaces should offer perks to encourage in-office attendance.

She said it takes having imagination in the corporate world, which is what Amazon has.

“They want to make sure people enjoy being in the office…[and] these are the considerations all employers should have for their employees,” said Wonodi. “…there should be incentives and reasons to bring people in.”

Showing Up Authentic

Wonodi has been with Amazon for three years and has been promoted four times. She said making lateral moves in Amazon is common and accessible. She added that Amazon has created an environment that allows people to be their authentic selves.

“It’s not radical to be yourself at Amazon,” said Wonodi.

Wonodi feels free to be her full self at Amazon, including wearing her hair how she wants. She added that Amazon does a great job of not cultivating the typical “mainstream” work environment. She feels included and truly a part of the team each day.

“Showing up as your full self is so important,” she said.

Wonodi will soon be approaching four years at Amazon, and she sees many more to come.

This article is part of our monthly Amazon series highlighting the human beings behind the company. This news coverage is sponsored by Amazon.